


How To Harness Your Inner Parent

by TooManyBooksToRead



Category: Linked Universe - Fandom
Genre: Characters will be added as they shift into focus, Gen, Legend is the primary subject of momsky, Sky is the Momfriend (TM), Time continues to persistently appear in the bg
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-17
Updated: 2020-03-01
Packaged: 2020-05-13 08:08:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,096
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19247209
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TooManyBooksToRead/pseuds/TooManyBooksToRead
Summary: Sky is always looking out for his family.





	1. Wild

**Author's Note:**

> Alternative Title "Can you guys seriously stop calling me mom"  
> Because I say Momfriend Sky rights.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wild doesn't take care of himself.

“Dammit!” Wild’s scream was heard through the camp, shortly followed by the clattering of metal pans as he got up. 

Sky thought he’d seen the scarred hero flinch as he stood up from his place next to the fire and picked up the fallen pan. 

“I need to go clean up this pan,” he said as he turned toward the nearby stream, “while I do that can someone keep the water from boiling and clean up the food I dropped” 

He didn't wait for an answer as he started walking away and Four, one of the few in their group who was usually allowed to help cook moved to take care of the pot set over the campfire and Hyrule and Wind cleaned up. 

Wild came back sometime later and finished cooking breakfast but he seemed to take less joy than usual in cooking, still, they set out only 30 minutes off schedule and continued moving through the countryside of the Hyrule they had been recently dropped in. 

But throughout the whole morning Wild acted much more subdued than usual, he stuck to the middle of their group as opposed to his usual routine of forging ahead with Hyrule and enthusiastically pointing out all the different features of the foreign land and he did his best to avoid Twilight, something that only seemed to happen when he was hiding something. 

This trend continued after lunch but by then Sky has already noticed how he grimaced as they kept walking and making up his mind he moved toward the front where Time was leading them with Twilight’s help. 

“We should make camp early today,” he said leaning in to whisper into their leader’s ear. 

“I know all of us are tired but Twilight tells me there’s a settlement we could reach by nightfall if we keep this pace.” 

“Wild is injured,” he said, “I don’t know what it is but he seems in pain and is favouring his right foot and I’d rather treat his injury while we still have daylight.” 

He could see the concern on Time’s face as he weighed the odds and came to a decision. 

“Settle down everybody,” he yelled turning towards the rest of the heroes, “we’re making camp here.” 

Cheers broke out as they started to unload their packs, he could see Time about to make his way to Wild, probably to ask about his injury but he stopped him. 

“Let me handle this.” 

He sat down right in front of where Wild had chosen to settle down and looked him straight in the eyes before asking, “Well where is it?” 

Wild looked confused for a second before he realized what he was being asked about. 

“Where is what,” he replied doing his best to appear nonchalant. 

Sky furrowed his brow as Wild subtly tried to move away from him. 

“I know you’re injured. Where is it?” 

“What do you mean, I’m not hurt at all.” 

Sky fixed Wild with his best, concerned look before trying again. 

“I need to know where you’re hurt so I can treat you.” 

“But I’m not—”

“Wild where are you hurt.” He demanded. 

“I dropped the pan on my foot, my toe is swollen and it hurts like hell,” then as an afterthought, “please don’t tell Twilight.” 

Sky shook his head before focusing on what Wild had told him. 

“We’re out of potions and fairies because of the battle yesterday,” he said taking off his gloves, “I’ll need to see your foot so I know how to treat it until we can get you some better healing.” 

“How did you know?” asked the younger hero while taking off his left shoe. 

“I’m more perceptive than you’d think.” 

Looking at Wild’s foot it was obvious that his toe was injured, judging by the swelling it was probably fractured. 

He gave Wild a look that may have been just a smidge too judgy but he honestly deserved it. 

“And why did you believe it would be fine to hide that you had an injury?” 

“You yourself said we’re out of healing supplies and we were heading to town to resupply anyway so I’d just hold out for when we had the stuff,” said the younger teen. 

Sky stared at him, that really couldn’t be all of it. After a few more seconds Wild broke. 

“It was also kind of embarrassing and I didn’t want us to waste supplies because I hurt a toe of all things.” 

“You do realize that if this hurt enough that walking pained you, it's probably broken, right?” 

“Oh.” 

“Yeah and putting weight on it all day probably didn’t help.” 

“ _Oh_.” 

Wild had the decency to look ashamed. Good. He really should stop downplaying whenever he was hurt. 

Sky rummaged around his bag before pulling out some bandages and wrapping his injured toe with the one next to it, it wouldn’t do much but it would partially immobilize it. 

“Do you have any ice with you?” he asked as he arranged Wild’s cot and put his own pillow at its foot. 

“Here,” Wild handed him a chunk of ice he had just retrieved from his slate, “I can pull out more if you need.” 

Sky wrapped the ice in a cloth before gently pushing Wild down into his bedding and setting the injured foot on the additional pillow, he then held the ice to the swollen toe. 

“If it is broken it may take a few weeks to heal, for now, I need you to sleep and apply ice every few hours,” he said with finality. 

“But I need to go look for ingredients to make dinner.” 

“No you need to sleep, someone else can cook today.” 

“But—”

H cut off the other teen’s protests before he could voice them. 

“No, you probably made it worse by walking on it all day so off to sleep with you. Doctor’s orders.” 

Wild laid down with a huff and stayed like that staring at the Sky until eventually his breathing evened out and he fell asleep. 

Sky removed the ice-filled cloth, which by now was really more just a wet rag and turned toward the rest of the camp. By now there was a nice fire going as the sun started to set on the horizon. 

“Someone else needs to cook today,” he said matter of factly, “Wild needs to sleep and tomorrow he’ll need someone to help him walking without putting weight on his left foot.” 

After some questions, they figured out who would take over for cooking dinner and who would help wild the next day with little incident, except for a few moments when the pan Four was using spontaneously caught on fire. 

Wild woke up in time for dinner only be pushed so he was still half laying down by Sky who then handed him a larger serving. 

“You need more energy to recover,” he said fixing him with a determination filled look, “we’re gonna help you walk without putting weight on your foot,” then before he could voice his complaints he continued, “potions may speed up the process but if you keep straining it, it will be even longer before you can walk normally again so, for now, finish your food and go back to sleep.” 

“You’re way too good at this, it isn’t fair,” said Wild pouting, “at least with Twi I can get a word in before he stops me. How do you do it?” 

“That’s my secret, now go to sleep little dove.” 

And before long Wild fell asleep with Sky’s hands gently running through his hair. 


	2. Legend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Legend doesn't want to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's parenting victim is Legend. Rat boy needs to experience the mom treatment sometimes.

Legend didn’t want to sleep. He couldn’t either but he also really didn’t want to. 

It had been two days since he’d had the nightmare, and really he should’ve known it was going to come back either way. He hadn’t been able to truly escape that horror and the fears that came with it since Koholint so instead of telling anyone he decided to do what he always did. Not sleep for a while, or ever again if he could find a way to sustain that. 

For now, he tried to keep away from the others focus on walking, sure he was used to not sleeping for long stretches of time but he didn’t want to snap at any of them or give them a reason to believe anything was wrong. 

Really there was nothing they could do to help and like hell was he going to tell any of them about the fucking island. 

One foot in front of the other. That was all he had to do, put one foot in front of the other and keep going until they stopped for lunch. And maybe reapply his makeup after, only to be safe. 

One step, another, a third, he could keep going. 

His line of thinking was unfortunately cut off by the sound of an arrow cutting through the air and barely missing Sky who was now walking next to him. 

_When had Sky gotten next to him anyway?_

He didn’t have any time to ponder this question however as he drew his sword and readied for battle. 

The Godessess truly did hate him. Half an hour later the group of heroes decided to pick up the pace and stop for lunch later and further along than they had originally planned. A sensible decision, but Legend still grumbled, he wasn’t gonna get any sleep and they were also unlikely to get any rest until the sun started to set. _Fantastic, simply marvellous_. 

However reluctantly the group of heroes forged ahead through the Hyrulean countryside. Legend was by now too tired to even pretend but they’d just fought a group of monsters and kept walking for a few hours so he believed that was a valid excuse. 

Sky was still hovering close to him, too close after, the chosen hero usually walked at a much slower pace, he took the time to look at his surroundings and take it all in. 

Legend started walking faster, he really didn’t want any company at the moment but he also didn’t want Sky to feel offended, or tell the others he was more annoyed than usual. 

Sky picked up his own pace so he was level with Legend again, this also happened the next two times. Either Sky wasn’t getting the hint or he had business with him. 

“You might as well be my shadow with how close you’re walking to me.” He said, then with a no-nonsense tone, “What’s up?” 

“I could ask you that same question.” Shot back the other, now giving up all pretence of subtlety – which really hadn’t been much given that Legend had known Sky was there the whole time – was walking right beside him. 

“I asked you first.” He replied. 

There was a moment of silence, presumably because he was thinking of how to answer Legend’s question. 

“You’ve been very quiet today, and you’re walking much slower.” He answers hesitantly. “I was worried so I decided to stay near you.” 

“Well, I’m not a dumbass like Wild so I wouldn’t hide any injuries. You can stop bothering me _mom_ ” 

“But there is something bothering you, enough to try to shut yourself out.” 

Legend doesn’t answer, looking away to avoid making eye contact with the other hero, he knew Sky wouldn’t make him talk about it if he didn’t want to but sometimes Sky was too perceptive for his own good. 

“I don’t wanna talk about it.” his voice is barely a murmur but Sky doesn’t bring it up again. 

He instead fills the air with his voice, a steady stream of words about Skyloft and the surface and a hundred other topics Legend barely pays attention to, but the constant stream of information keeps him busy and keeps his thoughts away from the shore of an island that was there but wasn’t. He silently thanks Sky and every so often chips in with a question or a snarky comment. 

His relaxes his posture – when had he gotten so wound up anyway? – and he swears he can see Sky’s smile widening out of the corner of his eye. 

They keep up this pattern until the sun starts to set and Time tells them they’re gonna set up camp. 

Legend has been dreading this moment all day even if Sky had briefly distracted him from how _tired_ he really feels. But he doesn’t want to sleep, he doesn’t even think he could if he wanted to. 

So when Time starts dividing their tasks he immediately volunteers for first watch, this isn’t anything out of the ordinary, the other generally believe he’s a night owl and that he has a much better time staying awake late and he's never seen the necessity of correcting them. 

What _is_ strange is Sky volunteering for first watch with him, the older hero generally goes to sleep as soon as they set up camp wherever they are, his sleep schedule seems sporadic at best and he seems to more take naps than actually sleep a full night, but Legend really isn’t in any position to judge other people’s sleeping habits. Yet it is still out of the ordinary for bird boy to be awake at the moment. 

Legend’s suspicions only rise when Sky proceeds to set his bedroll next to Legend’s rather than as close to the fire as he can without inconveniencing Wild like he usually does. 

This attracts a few stares but Sky waves them off, and they’ve all become accustomed to Sky spontaneously deciding he wants to use one of them as a pillow so they don’t pry. 

“What’s your game bird boy?” he asks. 

“I do not know what you mean my dear friend.” 

Sky isn’t even really trying to play innocent but if he refuses to acknowledge it and Legend still won’t be able to stop him he decides he doesn't have enough energy to deal with this. 

He instead decides to sit down on his own bedroll and lay out his items and take stock of what supplies he has on hand, he’d already done that twice but it would be a long night and he needed some sort of distraction. 

By the time Wild went around serving dinner he had already finished tallying the items he felt comfortable bringing out with the rest of the group there and considering he’d have a partner for his shift he didn’t think he could get through those he didn’t want to show. 

He finished his meal quickly feeling more energized now than he had all day and was about to turn around to try to find something to do during his shift when another bowl was pushed into his hands. 

He turned to give Sky a questioning look. 

“Eat.” It was a command and before he could argue he fixed him with that look Wild had told them about. 

He hadn’t believed Wild when he’d said it but now that he was experiencing it he had to admit it was true, Sky could get you to do anything with that look. He managed to look mad and concerned at the same time and Legend didn’t feel like facing Sky’s wrath so he took the bowl and ate. 

The noises of the camp started to slowly die down replaced by the steady breathing of his companions as they fell asleep one by one the crackling of the fire lulling them to sleep, Legend’s plan had been to wake second watch late so he’d have to spend less time pretending to sleep, but with Sky awake too that idea had to be scrapped. 

Instead, he settled for polishing his sword, proper maintenance was necessary regardless of anything Wild’s said. 

He’d been going at it for a while when Sky settled down in his own bedroll beside him and he caught the gleam of metal as he removed something from his bag. 

“You haven’t been sleeping.” Sky stated. 

His silence was apparently enough answer for the other hero as he turned to face him and gently put a hand over his. He slowly took away the sword he was tending to and the rag he was using and set them aside before retrieving the metal object he’d seen before. 

It was a golden harp, the metal carved with pictures of laurels and the edges shaped to resemble birds looking outward. He didn’t know Sky played. 

“I don’t really know how to play,” said the other beckoning him to sit closer, “but a dear friend gifted me this harp and I can strum the chords to her favourite song.” 

Legend looked at the dopey smile on Sky’s face and wondered if it was only a gift from a friend, however before he could pursue that line of thought Sky plucked a chord and hummed the note. 

There was a serenity about the scene, the warm fire behind them and Sky showing him this gift that seemed very intimate, it made him feel very aware of the weight of his eyelids, even if he didn’t want to sleep. 

Sky started plucking the strings clumsily gaining more confidence as he kept going, at some point, he started singing the words to the song, in Hylian so strange that he could barely catch a few of them. 

“Lay down, I’ll guard you against whatever is scaring you awake,” he said still playing the instrument in his hands. 

Legend’s eyes felt heavier now, he didn’t want to sleep but he didn’t think he could stop himself from succumbing to it. 

“Don’t leave me!” he said with perhaps more desperation than he would’ve wanted. “Please don’t leave me.” 

“I’ll stay with you all night little one.” 

“I don’t want to wake up alone again, please never again.”

“I’ll be here with you, I’m not leaving you alone.” 

Sky’s soft voice singing the strange lyrics set to a familiar melody was the last thing Legend heard before he fell asleep. 

Sky smiled softly as Legend’s breathing evened out and called out to Twilight so he could take the next shift before, putting away Zelda’s harp and settling down to sleep close to Legend. He was happy to see the other taking some well-deserved rest and he would keep his promise.

If the next morning Legend woke up with Sky curled around him and stayed there until the other hero woke up no one mentioned it, just as Legend didn’t mention on how Sky pushed his last stamina potion into Legends arms after breakfast with a smile as bright as the sun on his face. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always thanks for reading, feel free to comment I'm still learning and appreciate any constructive criticism you have.  
> Writing Legend is hard, I'll get the hang of him someday.


	3. Hyrule

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hyrule needs a break sometimes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well this took forever. Writing Hyrule is hard guys, pls tell me how. Hopefully next chapter won't take forever.

Hyrule was curious, he loved finding new things and exploring new places.

He loves being out in the open, wandering with no destination and enjoying the path and the things he finds along the way. Because of this, it's easy for him to get lost in the moment and wander away from the others.

Now this wouldn’t be such a problem – he’s a traveller, he’s used to living alone and on the go – if they weren’t constantly and randomly appearing in different Hyrules. Different places that spark his curiosity and make him wanna go off and explore and see all the new things he could find but running the risk of getting separated from the rest and subsequently stuck in an unknown Hyrule.

What it boiled down to is that he was restless, he wasn’t used to so many people all at once and he’d been craving for an opportunity to slip away for weeks. And he finally had it, they’d been stuck in Wild’s Hyrule for weeks and there had been no sign of the telltale magic discharge that washed across them when they changed Hyrules so he felt confident he could slip away for a few hours and wander around the forest, work off the energy and come back with a clear mind.

So with his mind made up, he volunteered to fetch firewood for the evening’s campfire and reassured Time that he’d be fine alone, he went into the woods and started picking up firewood and piling it on the edge of the clearing, after he was satisfied with the haul he turned around fully intending to get lost in the forest for a while. That is before he bumped into Sky.

“Uh hey, Sky. What are you doing out here?” he asked wringing his hand together.

“Shouldn’t I be asking you that question?” asked the older hero.

Hyrule did his best to avoid eye contact “I’m picking up firewood,” he said digging his heels into the grass, “we needed more timber for the campfire tonight.”

“Then what’s that pile of wood right there?”

Wild hadn’t been kidding when he said Sky was good, Hyrule was maybe a question away from giving away his plan. He was sure a few more moments under that stare would make him crack.

Since he seemed to be taking too long to respond Sky took his hand before turning around and leading him deeper into the forest. Which was admittedly a bit confusing since he thought he’d take him back to camp.

They emerged on a small clearing and stopped for a second, Sky stood on a boulder and looked at the sky before turning back towards Hyrule.

“We have about an hour give or take before we’ll be needed back at camp. So tell me,” he spread his arms towards the forest around him, “where do you want to go?”

Hyrule scrutinized the other hero, looking for the slightest sign of dishonesty, unable to find it he gave in to his curiosity.

“Aren’t you here to try to stop me?” he asked still suspiciously eyeing him.

Sky chuckled, “If I could stop you I would’ve already –” he moved closer to Hyrule gently grabbing one of his hands – “besides I think you really need this.”

Sky’s smile was sincere and reassuring not an ounce of judgement and wasn’t _that_ refreshing. He loved his family, he really did but it was strange for him to just see and interact with so many people so often when he was used to going weeks – even _months_ – without spotting another soul on the road.

And with that reassurance, he broke off their contact and dashed towards the treeline with a wide grin on his face, already he could hear the sounds of the woods breaking though, the burble of a nearby river, the crunching of dead leaves under his feet the scurrying of small forest critters making their homes all around them. He stopped for a second to take a deep breath already feeling the tension leaving his shoulders, the calm of the forest settling over him like a blanket.

He opened his eyes to see Sky beside him – how did he move so quietly? – and he felt his smile drop the tiniest fraction, he’d really hoped he’d be able to go off and explore on his own.

As if reading his thoughts – really it was uncanny how he kept doing that – Sky spoke softly, “I know you want to go off on your own but it would really be a weight off our conscience if at least one of us was with you. Besides,” he continued before Hyrule could protest, “someone needs to make sure our medic isn’t injured on his expedition.”

Hyrule pouted even if he would later deny it before turning back around to the trees behind him which all looked frankly the same.

“Alright _mom_ , you can come with me but do try to keep up.” Then he dashed through the foliage leaving behind a sputtering Sky.

He slowed down so Sky could catch up and took the time to really look at the world around him, the thick canopy spreading over the forest floor and blocking the light of the sun extended well beyond his sight. He took a moment to rip a large piece of bark from a nearby tree and briefly lamented not bringing his sketchbook with him.

His companion was surprisingly silent which was unexpected, Sky was a people person, he was all smiles and chatter and more often than not the one of their group to make conversation with the locals, a chipper tone and a bright smile on his face. It wasn’t weird per se just unusual to see him this quiet, the stillness fit him in a different way, gave him an air of calm and serenity as they trekked through the woods.

And so they slowed down to a meandering pace, stopping to admire the plants and observing the animals they could spot before they scurried away, every once in awhile Sky would ask a question about a plant or animal and he’d eagerly respond, but besides that, they walked with only the sounds of the wilderness around them. Every so often he’d pull off a large piece of bark to mark their path and they kept going like this until they stumbled into the river he’d heard earlier.

The water sparkled with the rays of sunshine that slipped through the canopy and now much closer the rushing of the water drowned out the other sounds of the forest, it was peaceful. He sat down on the bank of the river and now that he’d stopped realized how tired he really was, his limbs felt as heavy as lead and he was a bit woozy but he felt content.

He closed his eyes and felt Sky sit down beside him, he sat there for aa moment breathing slowly and steadily and let the energy slip out of him. He was hungry, apparently, that thought must’ve shown on his face since a second later Sky pushed a piece of jerky into his hands.

“Eat up.” He took a bite of his food. “It’s a long trek back to camp.”

They finished their smile in easy silence, enjoying the sight of the river. The silence was surprisingly easy right then, maybe it was a hero thing, to see the beauty in the quiet, to live alongside it rather than against it, to listen.

He snapped out of his thoughts when Sky nudged his side pointing to the darkening sky overhead and they started the journey back to camp aided by the marks he’d left, everything was going well, maybe too well for this little excursion, and then as though he’d invoked the bad luck through simply thinking about it his foot caught on an exposed root and he fell.

He felt his foot still caught on a root twist inward before a sting of pain following before he falls, he catches himself on his arms but the thick canopy has made it too dark for him to get a good look at his surroundings.

“Don’t say it,” he says quietly.

Hyrule does his best to try to stand up on his own, which is admittedly not very good considering it’s dark and his footing is unstable, his foot hurts dully and he entertains the idea that he’ sprained it.

He can feel Sky hovering nearby him as he stumbles looking for purchase. He tries to get himself on his feet again this time by supporting himself on a tree but as soon as he applies pressure he can feel the pain sparking in his ankle, definitely strained.

Sky must feel his discomfort because he comes closer to where he is half reclined on a tree and half sprawled on the forest floor, “Are you okay?” he asks his melodic voice sounding at home with the multitude of noises of the forest.

“I think I may have twisted my foot a bit.”

He hurries to reassure Sky that nothing is wrong but he doesn’t need to see to tell that his brow is furrowed, probably in concern maybe in annoyance, Sky doesn’t like when he doesn’t tell them he’s injured. But really he’s just fine, it’s a strained ankle he can make it back to camp on his own feet.

Unfortunately for him, Sky doesn’t seem to share that opinion as he hauls him up much to his protests which only stop once the other hero has threatened to carry him back to camp, “I swear I’m fine –” he cuts off with a hiss as he unexpectedly applies too much pressure to his foot.

“You were saying?”

And really there’s nothing Hyrule can do except give in grudgingly now that he’s been caught red-handed.

“You should be more careful,” Sky says settling Hyrule’s arm over his shoulder so he could support his weight on the way back, “also if you lie to me about the state of that foot of yours I will make sure you stay on indefinite bed rest.”

Sufficiently cowed by the threat Hyrule accepts the help as they slowly make their way back to camp, he can’t help but feel a small twinge of sadness as they leave behind the thick forest and start hearing the first evidence of human activity near the treeline – the crackle of the fire and the clicking of chainmail being discarded for looser clothing disturbing the quietness of the forest.

It wasn’t that much of a surprise when he came back to camp late, covered in twigs and leaves with his face, what was a surprise was Sky supporting his weight as he held him to a spot close to the fire and told him to stay put while he got him dinner.

“Soo…” Legend prompted with a smug grin on his face.

This was unfair, all he’d wanted was to explore a little there was absolutely no reason it should’ve ended up like this but Legend – the little shit – was still _looking_ at him and grinning like an idiot so he decided since today was already proving to be an exception he had nothing to lose by giving in.

“You’re right.” He said fixing his gaze on his now empty bowl. “I got Skyed.”

Legend laughed, of course he did, but he could admit he wasn't too far behind him on that and soon they were both out of breath. So it was that moment that Sky decided to come in and shove full plates at both of them.

And really the look of utter betrayal on Legend’s face as they watched Sky’s retreating back was something he’d treasure forever. But he figured he’d give him a bit of a pick me up.

“Thanks, mom!” he yelled.

And as laughter spread through the camp he added Sky’s flabbergasted look to the mental shelf right next to Legend’s.

Yes, definitely worth it.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading this, I'm still learning so any criticism is appreciated, hope you enjoy Sky being the absolute darling we all know he is.


End file.
